A subway worker in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, operates an electrical stairlift to assist a passenger with leg problems on Dec 2. [Liang Xu / Xinhua]

BEIJING - People with disabilities will have greater access to education and employment during the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) period, a China Disabled Persons' Federation senior official said on Tuesday.

Wang Naikun, the federation's executive vice-president, said cities and towns with a population of more than 300,000 will be required to build special education schools in the next five years. In addition, special education classes will be set up in public schools for preschool-aged disabled children.

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Wang said the government will establish more employment service centers and provide more training programs to meet the group's specific and diversified needs.

"Education and employment are the key factors for the survival and development of people with disabilities," the official told a news conference held by the State Council Information Office on Tuesday.

"These two issues will be highlighted in the government's work program for the disabled during the 12th Five-Year Plan period."

There are 83 million people with disabilities in the country, and the number is expected to surpass 100 million in five years.

Despite the government's continuous spending on programs for people with disabilities in recent years, their living standards remain lower than the national average. This was especially true for people living with disabilities in rural areas, who account for 70 percent of the total.

According to a report based on a nationwide survey of about 32,600 people with disabilities conducted over one year from April 2009, about 29 percent of school-aged children with disabilities were left out of China's nine-year compulsory education.

The report, released on Dec 1, also pointed out the group's registered unemployment rate in cities was 8.6 percent, twice that of the general urban public.

Still, people with disabilities in China have received more income and better rehabilitation services over the past five years, Wang explained.

Government spending on programs for people with disabilities for the 2006-2010 period more than doubled that of the previous five years. The increased funding helped improve the group's vocational training and employment services.

The government has also provided 4 billion yuan ($597 million) in subsidized loans since 2006 to help people with disabilities in rural areas start small businesses, including breeding and planting. Thanks to the program, more than 6 million members of the demographic have been lifted out of poverty.

Wang, who works for the federation the central government founded in 1988, blamed the imbalanced development of China's economy and society for the gap between the group and the general public.

She said China's huge population, more than 70 percent of which resides in the vast underdeveloped rural areas, has posed more difficulties to the improvement of the work and life of people with disabilities.

Guangzhou Mayor Wan Qingliang said the special needs of participants with disabilities at the coming 2010 Asian Para Games, which will open on Sunday, have been fully considered, and a high standard of services will be available.

Wang said the games also offers a good opportunity to help more people with disabilities participate in social activities and to increase the public's understanding of, and respect for, the demographic.

Xinhua contributed to this story.